Buildbase BMW Ryuichi Kiyonari is a man very much focused on this year’s MCE British Superbike Championship after being re-invigorated by the Buildbase BMW team he joined over the winter but also has his eyes set on a return to the World Superbike arena.

The three-time champion, who took a win and a second last time out at Knockhill, is full of confidence heading into this weekend’s Big Brands Bash and says taking a fourth trophy is paramount in his head.

“I want to win the title. Of course I do. The British championship is an important one to me, and I very, very much want to win the title for a fourth time. If I can win the championship here, then I want to go on to World Superbikes,” said Kiyonari, in an exclusive interview with Bikesport News.

“I want to go there with BMW. I am excited about our future. I am definitely much happier now than I have been for a few years and I want to keep this feeling. Since I first arrive they have been very good. I instantly felt at home. They are what I call a real racing team.

‘I don’t mean that Honda weren’t a real racing team, but at Honda it was very different. A lot of it was the media work, the autographs, keeping the PR side happy. Here at Buildbase it’s different. The racing comes first. That, to me, is what makes it so good.”

To read the full interview, get the new issue of Bikesport News, on sale tomorrow